Method for Making a Steamship Leg of Pork Cut and the Resultant Product

ABSTRACT

The present invention is a method for cutting a pork leg to create a meat cut which includes an exposed bone feature and a squared face. The method for making the exposed bone feature involves trimming shank meat bare from a fibula bone and removing a tibia bone above a knee cap joint leaving a stifle joint intact. The method for making the squared face involves removing light and dark butt trim and a rump point to form a generally flat surface. When oriented downward, the flat surface aligns with any flat support surface and holds the meat cut in a standing position. The standing position directs the exposed bone feature generally upward in a unique and attractive presentation. Additionally, the present invention relates to the resultant product formed by the same method where the meat cut allows for improved roasting, braising, slow-cooking, and carving of a ham roast.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/548,993(Attorney Docket No. FRFD. 128216), filed Oct. 12, 2006, entitled“METHOD FOR MAKING A STEAMSHIP LEG OF PORK CUT AND THE RESULTANTPRODUCT,” herein incorporated by reference.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This present invention relates to a method for making a Steamship leg ofpork roast cut and the resultant product. In particular, the presentinvention relates to a method for cutting a pig carcass to produce afresh ham and provides a method of trimming the leg of pork roast cut toproduce a meaty and easy to carve Steamship leg of pork roast cut.

There exists in the art examples of methods for cutting pork legportions from the carcass of the pig. Such examples disclose a methodwhereby the pork leg, or fresh ham is separated from the pork side by astraight cut approximately perpendicular to a line parallel to the shankbones. This straight cut passes near an anterior edge of an aitch bone.Next, a foot is removed slightly above the hock joint and the tail,vertebrae, flank muscle, and any other exposed lymph glands are removed.This example fresh ham is finished upon removal of overlying skin suchthat the skin and collar fat over a cushion is smooth and well rounded.Additional prior art provide examples provide a method for cutting apork leg into a short shank variation of the first example. The initialsteps are similar between the two; however, the shank is excluded by astraight cut made at an approximate right angle to the shank bones,thereby exposing a cross-section of the heel.

In butchering meats, the fresh ham contains trim meat and shank meatcovering the shank bones. However, the present invention discloses amethod for trimming shank meat from the fibula shank bone, removing thetibia shank bone, and removing the light and dark butt trim and rumppoint to form a squared face on the fresh ham.

In recent years, convenience and quality of presentation have becomeincreasingly important to both consumers and food service distributors.Accordingly, the present invention is directed to the preparation andservice of an innovative meat product, one which provides an aestheticand easy-to-handle meat product. Such a product is quite suitable forhome preparation and consumption. While particularly suited for sales inretail food markets, butcher shops, and grocers, the inventive meatproduct may also be sold to restaurants for commercial preparation andsale.

As such, the present invention will produce a unique and attractive meatcut that facilitates roasting, braising, or slow-cooking, as well asextending shelf-life. Further, the present invention improves cookedappearance and produces a tender bite and juicy flavor.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention provides a method for making aSteamship Leg of Pork roast cut and the resultant product. The firststep involves separating a fresh ham from a pig carcass. This stepinvolves making a cut perpendicular to an aitch bone that separates aleg from a loin, and making a second cut at a hock joint separating afoot from the leg. The remaining portion is a fresh ham, which includesa portion of the aitch bone, a leg bone referred to as the femur, a kneecap or patella, a stifle joint, several tail vertebrae, and a pair ofshank bones. The pair of shank bones include a tibia bone and a fibulabone. The fresh ham portion also includes a layer of skin and fat, arump (butt) end, cushion muscles, and a shank meat. The rump endincludes, among other meat sections, a rump point, and a light and darkbutt trim.

Once the fresh ham is separated from the pig carcass, the next step isto form the Steamship leg of pork roast from the fresh ham. First, thelayer of skin is initially removed from the pork ham to create a smoothouter surface. Next, a cutting tool is used to trim the shank meat awayfrom the pair of hind shank bones. The shank meat is trimmed bare to thefibula bone while the smaller shank bone, the tibia bone, is removedabove the knee cap. During this step, the stifle joint is left intactand no extra cuts to the shank meat are performed. The light and darkbutt trim and the rump point are removed to form a squared face on thefresh ham. The squared face is generally a flat surface that allows thefresh ham to rest in a standing position when the flat surface isorientated downward toward another flat surface such as a table, meatcounter, or shelf. In the standing position, the fibula bone is directedsubstantially upwards creating a unique and aesthetic appearance.Another beneficial characteristic of the standing position is that itprovides for improved carving and cooking of the ham.

Additional advantages, and novel features of the invention will be setforth in part in a description which follows, and in part will becomeapparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following,or may be learned by practice of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

In the accompanying drawings which form a part of the specification andwhich are to be read in conjunction therewith, and in which likereference numerals are used to indicate like parts in the various views:

FIG. 1 is a lateral skeletal view of a pig carcass showing the pork hamor hind leg and shows the ham loin separation;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the fresh pork ham starting point;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the shank meat being trimmed;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 3, but where the fibulabone is exposed;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the light and dark muscle trim beingremoved;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the rump point being removed;

FIGS. 7 and 8 are perspective views of the light and dark muscle trimremoved; and

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the finished Steamship leg of pork cutin standing position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a method for cutting a leg of pork,fresh ham, from a pig carcass and cutting the fresh ham to create aSteamship leg of pork roast.

Referring to the drawings in greater detail and initially to FIGS. 1-9,a method for making the Steamship leg of pork roast 10 (FIG. 9) isdescribed. FIG. 1 shows a skeletal view of a pig carcass 12 that issectioned by dashed lines representing incisions, e.g. cuts 40 and 42,which separate the pig carcass 12 into primary sections of meat. Anexemplary embodiment of a pig carcass 12 is a chilled fresh pig carcassproduced similar to North American Meat Processors Association (NAMP)403B. The primary sections of meat that are carved from the pig carcass12 are a Boston butt 14, a picnic 16, a loin 18, spareribs 22, a side24, a fresh ham 20, and a foot 28. The present invention relates to thefresh ham 20 section, which includes a portion of an aitch bone 30, aleg bone 32, a knee cap (patella) 37, a stifle joint 35, several tailvertebrae 38, and a pair of shank bones. The pair of shank bones includea tibia bone 36 and a fibula bone 34. Additionally, as shown in FIG. 2,the fresh ham 20 includes a layer of skin and fat 61, several lymphglands 63, a rump (butt) end 62, cushion muscles 65, a flank muscle 67,and a shank meat 54. The rump end 62 includes, among other meatsections, a rump point 82, and a light and dark butt trim meat 81.

The method of separating the fresh ham 20 from the pig carcass 12 willnow be discussed. The fresh ham 20 is initially separated from the side24, and loin 18 by incising with a cutting utensil similar to cuttingtool 50 (FIG. 3) along a ham-loin separation cut 40 as referenced inFIG. 1. It should be understood that other suitable cutting utensilscould be used, such as a hand saw, serrated knife, or band saw. Theham-loin separation cut 40 is a straight cut approximately perpendicularto a projected line 39, which runs parallel to the shank bones, 34, 36.The ham-loin separation cut 40 completely separates the fresh ham 20from the rest of the pig carcass 12. The ham-loin separation cut 40passes near an anterior edge of the aitch bone 30. Next, the aitch bone30 is completely removed from the fresh ham 20. A resulting cavity 44 inthe fresh ham 20 is depicted in FIG. 2. A preferred method for removingthe aitch bone 30 is such that the cutting tool 50 does not slash any ofthe cushion muscles 65. After removing the aitch bone 30, hard gristle58 adjacent to silver dollar 45 is removed from the fresh ham 20.

Next, the foot 28 is completely removed from the pig carcass 12. Thisseparation is performed along a ham-foot separation cut 42, which ismade by slicing with a cutting tool 50 (FIG. 3) along a section slightlyabove the hock joint 8. It is preferred that a minimum number of cutsare used while making separation cuts 40, 42, and that no resultantknife cuts penetrate into the cushion muscles 65.

Upon separating the fresh ham 20 from the loin 18, the side 24, and thefoot 28; the next formation step is to remove the several tail vertebrae38, the flank muscle 67, and the exposed lymph glands 63. Further, theloose surrounding tissue, loose hanging fat, exposed blood vessels, andassociated non-lean tissue (not shown), are also removed at this timevia the cutting tool 50 as part of facing process. It should beunderstood that the loose surrounding tissue, loose hanging fat, exposedblood vessels, and associated non-lean tissue are not shown in FIGS. 2-9because they have been previously removed. An exemplary embodiment ofthe fresh ham is a seventeen to twenty pound, bone-in ham, i.e. NAMP 401Fresh Ham; however, this is not meant to be limiting.

Upon separation of the fresh ham 20 from the pig carcass 12, theformation of the Steamship leg of pork roast 10 (FIG. 9) may commence.Returning to FIG. 2, an exterior of the fresh ham 20 as illustrated inthis stage of processing still retains a portion of overlying skin 52,which is part of the layer of skin and fat 61. The fresh ham 20 isfinished upon removal of overlying skin 52 such that a surface of skinand collar fat 64 (FIG. 6) over the cushion muscle 65 is smooth and wellrounded.

FIG. 3 shows one illustrative embodiment for butchering the fresh ham20. Any arrangement for supporting the fresh ham 20 will suffice forpracticing the present invention so long as all portions of the freshham 20 are suitably accessible for processing. In the illustratedexample, the fresh ham 20 is supported by a cutting surface 85 (FIG. 6)thereby freeing both the butcher's hands for use in the process.

Returning to FIG. 3, a section of shank meat 54 is completely removed byoperation of a cutting tool 50. The shank meat 54 should be trimmed downto the larger shank bone, the fibula bone 34. The preferred processrequires that the shank meat 54 is completely removed from both sides ofthe tibia bone 36 and fibula bone 34.

Next, the fat from the layer of skin and fat 61 is trimmed to form a fatcover 64. The fat cover 64 mainly includes skin and collar fat. The fatcover 64 is trimmed to a preferred depth of 0.25 inches and not toexceed 0.4 inches. However, this dimension is not meant to be limiting.As shown in FIG. 7, the fat cover 64 represents the outside surface, butfor the cut surfaces, of the fresh ham 20.

FIG. 4 best illustrates the shank meat 54 trimmed bare to the fibulabone 34. After trimming the shank meat 54 away from the fibula bone 34,the cutting tool 50 is used to remove the tibia bone 36 down to the kneecap 37. In other words, the tibia bone 36 is completely removed. Duringthis step in the formation procedure, the stifle joint 35 should be leftentirely intact. A preferred process for removing the tibia bone 36allows for no additional incisions or damage to the shank meat 54.

As shown in FIG. 5, the next procedure in forming the Steamship leg ofpork roast 10 consists of removing the light and dark butt trim meat 81from the rump end 62. The light and dark butt trim meat 81 is removedsuch that the ham-loin separation cut 40 face of the rump end 62 forms asquared face 83 on the fresh ham 20. The preferred embodiment of thesquared face 83 is a generally flat surface. As depicted in FIG. 6, thelight and dark butt trim meat 81 sections are completely removed anddisplayed on the cutting surface 85.

In the next step, as shown in FIG. 7, the cutting tool 50 is used toremove a portion of the rump point 82 from the rump end 62. Theremainder of the rump point 82, which is attached to the fresh ham 20,and the rump end 62 are trimmed square to further develop the flatsurface of the square face 83. The square face 83 and the removedsection of the rump point 82 are shown in FIG. 8. The squared face 83 iscompleted at this stage in the formation process. Moreover, all cuttingperformed on the fresh ham 20 for the resultant Steamship leg of porkroast 10 is complete.

The Steamship leg of pork roast 10, as shown in FIG. 9, is able to standupright on a flat surface, e.g. the cutting surface 85, by placing thesquared face 83 downward toward the flat surface. This orientationdisplays the Steamship leg of pork roast 10 in a standing position 86.The standing position 86 directs the fibula bone 34 in a generallyupward direction. A functional benefit of the standing position 86 isthat the squared face 83 allows for improved stability and ease ofhandling. More specifically, the standing position 86 provides for thefixed and stable orientation of the Steamship leg of pork roast 10 onflat surfaces and sets a standard orientation of the Steamship leg ofpork roast 10 that ensures a producer's affixed label will be orientatedproperly when on display. Additionally, the standing position 86resolves the issue of whether a meat's unpredictable resting position ona flat surface will display a manufacturer's label improperly. Further,the standing position 86 provides a unique and attractive meat cut thatfacilitates roasting, braising, or slow-cooking, as well as extendingthe shelf-life. Moreover, the standing position 86 improves cookedappearance, facilitates carving the Steamship leg of pork roast 10, andproduces a tender bite and juicy flavor.

The present invention has been described in relation to particularembodiments, which are intended in all respects to be illustrativerather than restrictive; changes may be made in form and detail.Alternative embodiments will become apparent to those skilled in the artto which the present invention pertains without departing from itsscope. For example, the description and figures refer specifically to amethod for preparing a Steamship leg of pork roast from a fresh ham.However, the method of the present invention could be applied to allclasses of swine beyond the domesticated pig, encompassing all wildrelatives, e.g. boar. Further, the process can be performed an anyalternative manner where the order of the formation procedure ismodified, where the specific steps are combined, reversed, oreliminated.

It will be seen from the foregoing that this invention is one welladapted to attain the ends and objects set forth above, and to attainother advantages, which are obvious and inherent in the device. It willbe understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utilityand may be employed without reference to other features andsubcombinations. This is contemplated. It will be appreciated by personsskilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to what hasbeen particularly shown and described hereinabove. Rather, all matterherein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to beinterpreted as illustrative and not limiting.

1. A meat cut from a fresh ham, the meat cut comprising: a squared faceformed as a generally planar resting surface by removal of butt trim andoutside rump point from the meat cut; and an exposed bone feature formedby trimming shank meat down to a fibula bone and then removing a tibiabone, wherein the generally planar resting surface holds the meat cutstable on a support surface when in a standing position.
 2. The meat cutas recited in claim 1, wherein the meat cut includes a portion of anaitch bone, a femur, a knee bone, a stifle joint, a layer of skin andfat, a cushion muscle, and a shank.
 3. The meat cut as recited in claim1, wherein said standing position is a substantially upward position. 4.The meat cut as recited in claim 1, wherein the meat cut is a ham roast.5. The meat cut as recited in claim 1, wherein the butt trim is lightand dark butt trim.
 6. The meat cut as recited in claim 1, wherein thesquared face is generally planar and aligns with a support surfacewhereby creating an upper portion and lower portion of the meat cut. 7.The meat cut as recited in claim 6, wherein the meat cut rests forcarving on the squared face such that the fibula bone is located on theupper portion of the meat cut.
 9. The meat cut as recited in claim 2,wherein the tibia bone is removed above a knee cap joint leaving thestifle joint intact.
 10. The meat cut as recited in claim 1, wherein themeat cut is taken from a swine carcass by making a straight cutgenerally perpendicular to a line parallel to the shank bones.
 11. Themeat cut as recited in claim 2, wherein the layer of skin and fatcovering the meat cut is removed, creating a smooth surface.
 12. Themeat cut as recited in claim 1, wherein the outside rump point istrimmed when forming the squared face.